Journalist Kalpana Sharma said energy audit is the need of the hour in Tamil Nadu as there is no solution in sight for the ongoing impasse over Koodankulam Nuclear Power Project.
Speaking at a panel discussion on ‘Nuclear Energy and the Media Cover-ups’ organised by Media Watch Bangalore, a media watchdog, she said, “There needs to be a lager debate on the issue. An energy audit has to be done in Tamil Nadu on the lines of the one done by retired IISc professor Amulya Reddy in Karnataka. This would address the wastage and misuse of power and question the need for the project.” Sharma, who was part of the the fact-finding team which visited Koodankulam, said, the protest by people should not snubbed just because they were poor. “People need to be engaged and involved,” she said.
Roshan Chandran, researcher of media coverage of people struggle at Vishtar Academy of Justice and Peace, expressed concerns over the media’s role in presenting facts and creating awareness about the issue.